Home Blog Page 175

Amnesty International: Hamid Nouri’s Release a “Staggering Blow” to Survivors, Families of 1988 Massacre

Hoshang Amiri
-
0
Amnesty International: Hamid Nouri’s Release a “Staggering Blow” to Survivors, Families of 1988 Massacre

In a statement, Amnesty International described the “shocking release” of Hamid Nouri, a former deputy prosecutor of Gohardasht Prison, who was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Supreme Court of Sweden for his involvement in the execution of thousands of political prisoners in Iran in 1988, as a “staggering blow” to the survivors and families of the victims.

In this statement, released on Tuesday, June 18, Amnesty International warned that the prisoner exchange between the Iranian regime and Sweden would fuel a “crisis of impunity” in the Iranian regime.

According to this human rights organization, the decision of the Swedish government not only emboldens Iranian regime officials to commit more crimes under international law, including “hostage-taking, without fear of consequences,” but also undermines the “right to justice” and raises concerns about the Swedish government’s commitment to international law.

Amnesty International emphasized that the conditions of Hamid Nouri’s pardon by the Swedish government and his return to Iran are evidence of the organization’s previous concerns that Iranian regime officials take Swedish citizens hostage for prisoner-swap deals.

Amnesty International also pointed to the danger of the execution of Ahmadreza Djalali, a Swedish-Iranian citizen who remains arbitrarily detained by the Iranian regime, especially given the ongoing and worrying executions in Iran, and has called on Swedish authorities to immediately take all actions for his release and return home.

Ahmadreza Djalali went to Tehran in the spring of 2016 at the invitation of Tehran University for a lecture and was arrested. Iranian regime judicial authorities have sentenced him to death on spying charges.

In an audio file, this Iranian-Swedish doctor told the Swedish Prime Minister that “you left me with the great danger of execution in Evin Prison. You did not fight either for my situation or for the annulment of my death sentence.”

In its statement, Amnesty International also reiterated its calls on Swedish authorities to “criminally investigate all Iranian officials suspected of criminal responsibility for the crimes under international law and human rights violations committed against Ahmadreza Djalali, including torture, on the basis of the principles of universal jurisdiction and passive personality jurisdiction.”

In part of its statement, Amnesty International pointed to the continuation of the “systemic impunity” crisis concerning the commission of crimes and serious human rights violations by Iranian regime officials and the lack of criminal prosecution of them according to international standards.

According to this human rights organization, as a result of this crisis, not even a single Iranian regime official has been investigated concerning the massacre of political prisoners in 1988, let alone tried and punished.

Amnesty International stated that the verdict against Hamid Nouri in Sweden, issued after three decades of efforts by survivors and the families of victims, was the first time that an Iranian regime official was held accountable in this regard.

The organization added that those seeking justice and truth are now “horrified” by the message that the prisoner exchange sends to Iranian regime officials that their crimes will go unpunished.

In continuation of its statement, Amnesty International has called on all governments to prosecute all former and current Iranian regime officials involved in crimes against humanity and other crimes under international law.

Hamid Nouri, a former deputy prosecutor of Gohardasht Prison, was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Supreme Court of Sweden for his involvement in the execution of thousands of political prisoners in the 1980s. This is the highest punishment under Swedish law. This verdict was issued after more than 90 court sessions with the presence of plaintiffs and witnesses, including members and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), who constitute the main victims of the 1988 massacre of more than 30,000 political prisoners in Iran.

The release of Hamid Nouri and his return to Iran sparked a wave of public outrage from Iranian resistance and widespread reactions from political and human rights figures.

Mrs. Maryam Rajavi the president-elect of the NCRI said: All prisoners, torture survivors, plaintiffs, families of the massacre victims, and the entire Iranian nation strongly condemn the release of Hamid Noury. They neither forgive nor forget.

IAEA: Iran’s Regime Capable of Producing Latest Generation of Centrifuges

Sia Rajabi
-
0
IAEA: Iran’s Regime Capable of Producing Latest Generation of Centrifuges

Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced that since the signing of the JCPOA in 2015, Tehran’s nuclear program has significantly developed. According to Rafael Grossi, the Iranian regime is capable of producing the latest generation of centrifuges, building new facilities, and taking actions far beyond these.

In an interview with the Russian newspaper Izvestia published on Monday, June 17, Grossi emphasized that the Iranian regime is not considered a completely reliable actor on the international stage and the world is suspicious of Tehran’s nuclear activities.

His remarks come a few days after the Board of Governors approved a resolution proposed by Britain, France, and Germany, known as the Troika, regarding Tehran’s nuclear program with 20 votes in favor, 12 abstentions, and 2 votes against.

The resolution calls on the Iranian regime to improve its cooperation with the IAEA and lift the ban on the entry of “experienced inspectors” from the Agency.

On September 17, 2023, the Iranian regime revoked the permits of a group of IAEA inspectors operating in Iran.

In continuation of his interview with Izvestia, Grossi, while acknowledging the statements of Iranian officials regarding the high number of IAEA inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities, said there are convincing reasons for this.

He added that the IAEA does not follow an anti-Iran policy. “We are not saying that Iran should not use its technological skills and capabilities. Not at all. We are simply saying that the necessary access [for IAEA inspectors] to [Iranian nuclear facilities] will benefit both parties,” he said.

Earlier, Reuters, citing a confidential IAEA report, wrote that on June 9 and 10, the Iranian regime informed the Agency that it would install eight cascades, each containing 174 IR-6 centrifuges, within three to four weeks at the Fordow facility.

This action by Tehran was taken in response to the recent resolution by the Board of Governors.

Grossi: The JCPOA has lost its meaning

In his interview with Izvestia, Grossi emphasized the necessity of returning to diplomacy to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue and simultaneously warned that the JCPOA now exists only on paper and has no meaning. “Nobody applies it, nobody follows it.

According to the IAEA Director General, efforts were made to revive the JCPOA in Vienna, but unfortunately, despite being relatively close to success, they failed for reasons unknown to him.

The European Union wrote in a statement on June 4 that ensuring the Iranian regime does not acquire nuclear weapons is one of the Union’s main security priorities.

The statement expressed regret that Iran has not taken the necessary decisions to return to its nuclear commitments under the JCPOA.

Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Iranian regime, emphasized the continuation of the Iranian regime’s nuclear program on April 24 and considered the sanctions as a means for “flourishing talents” and the emergence of “domestic capacities.”

Morality Police Continues to Patrol the Streets of Iran

Jubin Katiraie
-
0
Morality Police Continues to Patrol the Streets of Iran

The broadcast of violent arrests of two women by the Morality Police on Sunday, June 16, on social media has brought the suppression of women under the pretext of mandatory hijab to the forefront of discussions among social media users. This coincides while the candidates of the upcoming presidential elections are avoiding responsibility and their history of supporting the Morality Police and hijab enforcers.

In videos circulating on social media, Iranian women in Tehran are seen being violently taken into police vans by the Morality Police.

These images quickly spread among social media users, sparking their anger and protests against what they see as an “election show.”

The issue of the Morality Police has become a central topic in the debate among the three candidates vying for the presidency, to the extent that it has led to revelations and accusations among government insiders.

Mohammad Fazeli, a sociologist close to the government faction, indirectly criticized Alireza Zakani for avoiding defending the necessity of hijab enforcers (those who admonish or arrest women deemed improperly veiled in metro stations). In the Ham-Mihan newspaper, he asks: “If the majority of Iranians support the Morality Police, mandatory hijab, and the Noor Plan, as proponents of these policies claim, why do principlist candidates not openly defend the Morality Police to increase their votes? They know their claims are baseless.”

Meanwhile, Mashregh News, a website close to the principlists, exposed Masoud Pezeshkian’s alignment with Ali Motahari in questioning then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad about the Morality Police. It writes: “For instance, Masoud Pezeshkian signed a petition in 2011 questioning why the chastity and hijab plan had not been implemented. This former parliament member later stated that hijab is law and must be enforced.”

Yesterday, during the presence of the reformist-supported candidate at a student meeting, the Islamic Association of Students at Sharif University of Technology issued a statement addressing Masoud Pezeshkian, saying, “We are tired of your daily colorful deceptions.”

On June 17, during Masoud Pezeshkian’s campaign appearance among students, the secretary of the Islamic Association at Sharif University addressed this government-endorsed candidate, saying, “You see yourself as a doctor who has come to give artificial respiration to the lifeless body of democracy; whereas this body is on its way not to the treatment room, but to the cemetery.”

Iran’s Water Resources Enough for Only 50 million People, Even with Rainfall

Mehdi Hosseini
-
0
Iran’s Water Resources Enough for Only 50 million People, Even with Rainfall

Mohammad Jafar Nazem Al-Sadat, head of the Center for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Research at Shiraz University, says that even if the average rainfall in the country returns to normal levels, Iran’s water resources will only suffice for “between 40 to 50 million people.”

On Sunday, June 9, Mohammad Jafar Nazem Al-Sadat, mentioned that some provinces of Iran experienced near-normal rainfall this year and told the ILNA News Agency: “Approaching the average rainfall is for a situation where the country’s population was between 40 to 50 million, and now with double the population, even if the rainfall is within normal ranges, it is not sufficient.”

This atmospheric sciences researcher further stated: “Currently, water reserves in Iran are depleted and there is no water for storage, and in this situation, if in a season like this spring some provinces experience near-normal rainfall, it does not mean that this amount can compensate for the shortages.”

He then explained that the number of drought periods in Fars province is higher than wet periods and said: “We are constantly facing water stress, and subsidence means the end of the soil’s water absorption capacity.”

Iran has been struggling with severe water shortages and the resulting environmental crises for over a decade.

The insufficiency of water resources for about half of Iran’s population is being discussed while two senior officials of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) called for an increase in Iran’s population during a speech at the “Youthfulness of Population Conference” on Saturday, June 8.

Hossein Salami, Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, said at this conference: “If the population growth rate does not become exponential, the society will age, and an aging society is doomed to perish.”

Additionally, Mohammad Reza Naqdi, another official of this military-security institution, criticized Iranian citizens’ reluctance to marry and have children and stated: “Population decline is the most important issue in the country, and we are facing a very serious threat today.”

Ali Khamenei, the Iranian regime supreme leader, initiated the population growth project in the early 2010s, with keywords such as “population increase,” “childbearing,” and “youthfulness”; keywords that, after a decade, have been incorporated into Iran’s laws and financial documents.

Khamenei describes “population increase” as one of the tools of the country’s power and seeks to achieve a population of 150 million people.

In the 2023 budget law, at least 108.99 trillion rials (approximately $181.65 million) in direct credits have been allocated for the “population project.”

This amount is about seven times the central credits of the Ministry of Science, about four times the budget of the Ministry of Labor, Cooperation, and Social Welfare, nearly twice the credits of the Ministry of Agriculture Jihad, and three times the total credits of the Environmental Protection Organization.

Construction Workers Do Not Have Early Retirement

Hoshang Amiri
-
0
Construction Workers Do Not Have Early Retirement

A labor activist for Iranian construction workers criticized the working conditions of construction workers, stating that their insurance has faced serious obstacles and has been halted.

He also mentioned that construction workers are not entitled to early retirement benefits, and even if they are insured, their lives and health are at risk.

According to the regime’s ILNA news agency, Mohammadzadeh, a labor activist for construction workers in Kermanshah, stated that while construction work is one of the most difficult and hazardous jobs, accounting for more than half of the country’s work-related accidents, it is not considered a hard and hazardous occupation by law.

This labor activist emphasized that a construction worker, after 30 or 40 years of paying for insurance, cannot retire due to occasional interruptions in their insurance. He stressed, “In fact, this worker has to keep working as long as they are alive.”

In continuation of the anti-labor actions of Iran’s regime, the Ministry of Labor, issued a directive on June 16, eliminating the possibility of early retirement for workers.

On May 29, the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, by issuing directive No. 57, clarified the situation for contract workers and placed all responsibility on the contractor.
According to this directive, the main employer has no responsibility. With the implementation of this directive, a worker who has had contracts with several different contractors during their employment at a single workshop may remain indefinitely delayed in early retirement.
Mohammadzadeh, the labor activist, reported that in many provinces of the country, not a single new worker has been insured in recent years.

He stated that construction workers “often become old and incapacitated but do not retire,” and in an interview with ILNA, he emphasized, “They are forced to quit working due to old age and illness without receiving a single rial of retirement pension.”

Earlier, in January 2024, Akbar Shokat, head of the Association of Construction Workers’ Trade Unions, said, “The insurance of about 300,000 people has been cut off in the past three years.”

He emphasized, “No new workers are being insured, and about 500,000 people are waiting for insurance.”
In May 2024, Ali Ziaei, head of the Crime Scene Investigation Group of the National Forensic Organization, reported the deaths of 2,115 workers and the injury of 27,000 workers due to work-related accidents in 2023.

Ziaei stated that falling from heights has always accounted for the largest share of work-related accident fatalities. He added that last year, 983 victims of workplace accidents lost their lives due to falls from heights, accounting for 46.5% of the total fatalities.

Following this, ILNA news agency, in a report criticizing the “statistical cover-up by the Ministry of Labor,” wrote that these statistics mean the death of 5.79 workers every day of the year.

Iran: Female Farm Workers in Khuzestan with Lowest Wages and No Insurance

Esmaeil Mohades
-
0
Iran: Female Farm Workers in Khuzestan with Lowest Wages and No Insurance

Female farm workers in Khuzestan, southwest Iran, work on a daily wage basis without insurance and with the lowest wages. Some of these women, even at 80 years of age, have been forced to work in the agricultural fields for the past 60 years.

On Saturday, June 15, the regime’s Etemad newspaper reported on the lives and work of female farm workers in Khuzestan province.

They work in the agricultural fields, from young to old and of various ages, in the 40- to 50-degree Celsius heat of Khuzestan without any shade or cool water, and many times they have suffered from heat stroke due to working in high temperatures, requiring medical attention and hospitalization.

One of them is an 80-year-old woman who has been working without insurance for 60 years. According to Etemad, if she had insurance, she would have retired twice by now based on her work experience.

Another woman started working in tomato picking and agriculture at the age of 13. Now, at 40 years old, due to the unemployment of her husband and sons and her daughter’s schooling, she still works out of necessity to make a living and earn an income.

Female workers in Iran face many problems and inequalities, including limited job choices, low wages, workforce downsizing, and poor working conditions.

Despite 42 years since the adoption and implementation of the “Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women” and about 10 years since the adoption of the “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” the Iranian regime has refused to join these two global treaties.

Fatal Accidents for Female Workers

In recent years, numerous reports have been published about the deaths of female tomato-picking workers on their way to work in the southern provinces of Iran.

Female farm workers in Khuzestan province have repeatedly heard news of accidents and the deaths of women on the roads of this province.

Mohammad Mali, a media activist, told Etemad, “Every day, several thousand women travel in this way on unsafe, very narrow, non-standard, and unmarked roads, and they experience accidents, but no one hears about it. Because these women have no voice at all.”

Physical and bodily injuries due to poor work safety conditions in Iran threaten the lives of many workers daily. Ali Ziaei, head of the Crime Scene Investigation Group of the National Forensic Organization, reported in May 2024 that 2,115 workers died and 27,000 were injured due to work-related accidents in 2023.

The state-run ILNA news agency, in a report criticizing the “statistical cover-up by the Ministry of Labor,” wrote that these statistics mean the death of about five workers every day.

Khuzestani female farm workers, who are willing to endure low incomes, the hardship of the road, and agricultural work, face many problems in their lives.

Etemad wrote that the daily working hours are about 11 to 12 hours, and working in unsuitable conditions and environments also causes physical problems for these women.

One of these women told Etemad, “Many of us suffer from herniated discs in our backs and necks because of this work. Some others have developed kidney diseases due to excessive heat and dehydration.”

Most of these women sometimes work in two shifts and may travel the same route twice. If the farm is too far away, they do not return to the village, and the whole group stays there.

They told Etemad that when it comes time to receive their wages, they face excuses from the employers. Some do not have money, and others make full payment of wages conditional on the complete sale of the produce, and if the produce is not sold, they do not get paid at all.

Who Hears the Voices of Thousands of Khuzestani Female Workers?

In another article, Etemad wrote that according to statistics, Khuzestan has more than 35,000 female heads of households, a significant portion of whom work on agricultural lands.

The newspaper wrote that unofficial sources indicate that this number is even higher. According to this report, Dezful county alone has more than 5,000 female workers in the agricultural sector.

They work in labor groups, ranging from teenage girls to elderly women in their 70s, to earn just 200,000 rials (about $3) per day.

Social security insurance experts say that farmer insurance is inexpensive, but according to the law, women cannot be insured as workers. While according to Etemad, female farmers work alongside men but receive only 60% of men’s wages.

According to statistics announced by the financial institutions of the Social Security Research Organization, women comprised 80% of uninsured employees in 2017. On May 23, the Statistical Center of Iran released a summary of the 2023 labor force survey and wrote that during this period, only 3,907,036 women were employed.

Sweden Returns Hamid Nouri, a Convict Sentenced to Life Imprisonment, To Iran

Jubin Katiraie
-
0
Sweden Returns Hamid Nouri, a Convict Sentenced to Life Imprisonment, To Iran

Iran and Sweden, with Oman’s mediation, exchanged several imprisoned citizens, resulting in the release of Hamid Nouri, a former deputy prosecutor, in exchange for the release of Johan Floderus and Saeed Azizi, two Swedish hostages held by Iran’s regime. Nouri was then sent to Tehran.

On Saturday, June 15, after his release and arrival in Iran, Hamid Nouri emphasized that he is “Hamid Abbasi,” a pseudonym he used as a deputy prosecutor at Gohardasht Prison during the executions of political prisoners in 1988.

A few hours earlier, the deputy for international affairs of the Iranian judiciary announced that Hamid Nouri, who had been tried and imprisoned in Sweden, was released and would return to Iran.

Kazem Gharibabadi stated on social media on Saturday that Nouri’s arrest in Sweden since 2019 was “illegal” and wrote that the former deputy prosecutor “will return to the country in a few hours.”

Simultaneously, Oman’s official news agency reported that, through the country’s mediation, Iran and Sweden had agreed to the mutual release of detained citizens in both countries.

The news agency announced that the prisoners of both countries “were transferred from Tehran and Stockholm to Muscat today to be returned.”

Minutes after the release of this report, the Swedish Prime Minister also announced that two imprisoned Swedish citizens in Iran had been released and would soon return to their families. These two Swedish citizens have been identified as Saeed Azizi and Johan Floderus.

Hamid Nouri, 62, was arrested on November 9, 2019, at Stockholm Airport upon arriving on a direct flight from Iran, based on complaints by human rights activists and opponents of the Iranian government to the Swedish police.

The Swedish prosecutor’s complaint against Hamid Nouri was based on evidence related to the secret massacre of several thousand political prisoners in the summer of 1988 in the prisons of the Iranian regime.

During the executions in the summer of 1988, Hamid Nouri, under the pseudonym “Hamid Abbasi,” was a deputy prosecutor at Gohardasht Prison. However, he and his lawyers had differing statements in court regarding this.

The Swedish prosecutor’s office charged Hamid Nouri based on the principle of universal jurisdiction, which examines crimes regardless of where they were committed. Swedish judicial authorities tried him on this basis.

In a case that took 93 sessions in the Swedish judiciary, at least 60 plaintiffs and witnesses and 12 experts in Islamic jurisprudence and international law spoke about Hamid Nouri’s case.

At the end of a lengthy trial, a court in Sweden sentenced him to life imprisonment in July 2022 for “gross violations of international humanitarian law and murder.”

An appeals court also upheld the life imprisonment sentence for Mr. Nouri on December 19.

In March 2024, the Supreme Court of Sweden announced that it would not review Hamid Nouri’s appeal against his life imprisonment sentence for participating in the massacre of political prisoners in the summer of 1988, thereby upholding his life sentence.

Reactions to Hamid Nouri’s Release

The National Council of Resistance of Iran, in a statement, called Hamid Nouri’s release “shameful and unjustifiable” and stated that this action reassures the Islamic Republic that it can return its agents through “hostage-taking.”

Kenneth Lewis, a lawyer who represented several plaintiffs in Hamid Nouri’s trial, said that his clients were not consulted before the release of the former Iranian deputy prosecutor and added that he was “shocked and devastated” by the release.

He told Reuters that this is a blatant insult to the entire judicial system and everyone who participated in the trial sessions.

The lawyer also noted that his clients sympathize with the Swedish government’s efforts to bring back its citizens but said that Hamid Nouri’s release was “completely disproportionate.”

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, also welcomed the release of the two Swedish citizens from “Iran’s unjust detention” and congratulated the Swedish government for its efforts to secure

Two Decades of Killing and Violence Against Kolbars in Iran

Mehdi Hosseini
-
0
Two Decades of Killing and Violence Against Kolbars in Iran

In recent months, the violence of the Iranian regime’s border guards against Kurdish kolbar (porter)has increased, and in May alone, six kolbars were killed.

Kolbars are individuals who carry goods and merchandise from neighboring countries into Iran. Due to the difficult routes, these loads are carried on their backs, and each kolbar receives a very small amount that barely sustains their survival. This work is very common in the border areas of Iran because the Iranian regime does not provide any facilities or jobs for the youth in these regions, and instead, the share of the people in these areas is the bullets of the regime’s security forces.

Most of these individuals are found in the western and southeastern regions of Iran.

The issue of “illegal” import and export of goods in Iran is not limited to a specific border or region. According to the officials of the Iranian regime, smuggling of goods occurs not only through illegal borders but also through official gates, docks, and even airports. The type and volume of smuggling depend on many factors. It is unclear what the share of Kurdish border kolbars in the volume of smuggled goods is, but officials have often described it as “insignificant.” Nevertheless, it is evident that they, along with Baluchi fuel carriers, bear the highest human cost of “goods smuggling.”

However, the Iranian regime and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are considered some of the largest smugglers of drugs, oil, and other goods both inside and outside Iran. And they are never held to account for their smuggling activities.

According to human rights networks, in recent months, the level of violence by the Iranian regime’s border guards against kolbars and traders has increased significantly.

The Kurdistan Human Rights Network reported that in just the three months of March, April, and May, 17 kolbars were killed in the border areas of Iran and Iraq from gunfire by the Iranian regime’s border guards, and dozens of people, including several child kolbars, were injured.

The shooting of kolbars and border traders by Iranian border guards is not a new occurrence. Over the past two decades, the rate of shooting by the Iranian regime’s forces towards kolbars and border traders has increased significantly.

Ahmed Shaheed, the former UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, described the killing of kulbars by the Iranian regime as “systematic” in 2013. He stated in his report that the agents shoot kulbars without any warning, a practice that continues to this day, as confirmed by human rights networks.

Many of the individuals engaged in kolbar activities are educated people who cannot find any jobs.

According to a report by Kolbar News, in 2023, at least 44 kolbars were killed, of which 31 kolbars lost their lives due to shootings by the police and border guards.

In recent years, kolbars of all ages have been seen, including children as young as 14 or 15, women who are heads of households, and the elderly. The only response of the Iranian regime to these individuals is bullets, a regime that itself is one of the largest smugglers.

Iran’s Regime Has Tripled Taxes to Compensate for Low Oil Revenue

Jubin Katiraie
-
0
Iran’s Regime Has Tripled Taxes to Compensate for Low Oil Revenue

The Iranian Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance stated that the government’s tax revenues have reached 8,000 trillion rials, equivalent to $13.5 billion. According to Ehsan Khandouzi, the Tax Organization achieved 108% of the projected revenue for 2022, setting a new record in the country’s tax collection history.

Khandouzi did not mention the annual growth rate of tax revenues but said the government had 4,700 trillion rials in tax revenues last year, indicating significant growth.

Oil exports are considered the main source of budget revenue for Iran, which is still under sanctions by the United States.

Although Tehran sells approximately 1.3 million barrels per day to China, it is unclear how much cash it receives in return due to international sanctions.

Since 2023, the government has exerted significant pressure to raise taxes and increase their collection. Over the past three years, budget tax revenues have increased by more than 162%.

The government’s goal for the current fiscal year is to collect over 13,000 trillion rials in tax revenue, reflecting a 62% increase from the previous fiscal year. These figures indicate a 326% increase in tax revenues compared to 2021.

As a result, the share of tax revenues in the government’s budget has increased from 25% to 53% during this period. Iran’s government tax revenues have increased by 326% since Ebrahim Raisi became president in 2021.

The surge in tax revenues during Raisi’s presidency, from July 2021 to May 2024, coincided with an increase in poverty among Iranian citizens.

According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), per capita meat consumption decreased by one-third between 2020 and 2023.

Why is the government increasing taxes?

Before the US sanctions against Iran in 2018, about 40% of the government budget relied on oil revenues, but due to oil sanctions, this amount has decreased to 21% this year.

The Iranian government has projected total domestic sales and export revenues from oil and gas in the budget to be 6,414 trillion rials which is about half of the tax revenues or approximately $11 billion at the current exchange rate.

Officially, the government’s budget share is less than 50% of oil export revenues. Of the total oil dollars, 14.5% is allocated to the National Iranian Oil Company, 2.5% to deprived areas, and the rest to the National Development Fund.

In recent years, the government has also used the National Development Fund’s share of oil revenues to cover its budget deficit. Despite this, the government budget still faces a 30% deficit each year because oil revenues are much lower than the pre-sanctions period.

OPEC has not yet released its annual report for 2023, but Iranian customs statistics show that the country’s oil export revenue was $37 billion in the previous fiscal year.

The actual cash revenue from crude oil exports to China remains a secret. Many observers believe that the Iranian regime directly uses its oil revenues. Accordingly, part of the regime’s export revenues is kept in China to be used later for paying the costs of importing goods to Iran. Another reason for the increase in tax revenues is inflation.

According to estimates by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Iran’s annual inflation rate has averaged over 42% since 2020.

Therefore, even considering the inflation rate, the Iranian government should have increased taxes by a maximum of 160%, not 326%.

 

 

Iran’s Regime Installing Hundreds of Centrifuges to Nuclear Facility, IAEA Warns

Mehdi Hosseini
-
0
Iran’s Regime Installing Hundreds of Centrifuges to Nuclear Facility, IAEA Warns

Reuters, citing a confidential report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) seen by the news agency, wrote that the Iran’s regime informed the IAEA on June 10 and 11 that it would install eight cascades, each consisting of 174 IR-6 centrifuges, within three to four weeks at the Fordow facility.

According to the report, the IAEA confirmed on June 11 that the Iranian regime had completed the installation of IR-6 centrifuges in two cascades at Fordow and that installation in four other cascades was ongoing.

The confidential report on the Iranian regime’s nuclear program has been sent to the members of the organization.

The report also indicates that Iran, in a letter to the IAEA on June 11, announced its intention to install 18 cascades of IR-2m centrifuges at the underground Natanz enrichment facility.

According to Reuters, the Iranian regime has not specified the timing for this activity at Natanz.

Tehran’s new move comes a few days after the Board of Governors passed a resolution proposed by Britain, France, and Germany, known as the E3, on the Iranian regime’s nuclear program with 20 votes in favor, 12 abstentions, and two votes against.

The resolution calls on the Iranian regime to improve its cooperation with the IAEA and lift the ban on the entry of “experienced inspectors” from the agency.

On September 17, 2023, the Iranian regime revoked the licenses of a group of IAEA inspectors to operate in Iran.

Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, defended Tehran’s decision in October 2023, stating that the reason for this action was the inspectors’ political maneuvering.

Earlier, on June 12, Reuters, citing five IAEA diplomats, reported that the Iranian regime had increased its uranium enrichment capacity at Fordow and Natanz in response to the Board of Governors’ resolution.

Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations, criticized the Board of Governors’ action on June 6, stating that Tehran has adhered to its commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty of nuclear weapons (NPT).

In a letter to the UN Security Council, Iravani wrote: “The claim that Iran’s nuclear program has reached a critical and irreversible point, along with claims that Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities pose a threat to international peace and security, are completely false and baseless.”

Ali Shamkhani, political advisor to the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, and a member of the Expediency Discernment Council, also called Britain, France, and Germany “misguided” on June 1 and threatened that Tehran would give a “serious and effective response” to their proposed resolution.

Some media outlets in Iran had previously reported that the responsibility for the regime’s nuclear negotiations had been assigned to Shamkhani.

1...174175176...3,782Page 175 of 3,782